Kitbashes

KuvahMagh · Post by **KuvahMagh** » Mon May 19, 2008 12:39 am

On a side note, I think ships like the Polaris should not be considered in this category, they would need serious re-engineering to make them work internally but they are at least reasonable designs, especially when compared to the horrible scaling/mismatch of the others.

I'm also not against Kitbashing as a rule but do oppose it vigorously when it is put to no good use, what really bugs me are all these fan designs which strap an extra nacelle onto an Excelsior and call it a Dreadnought. It can be done with style and come out to be an interesting ship but when you just put random parts together for no reason except that one is an Engineering Hull and one is a Nacelle it just doesn't work. As I said before, many a ship in Trek started out their lives as Kitbashes and have come to be liked by fans.

Post by **Teaos** » Mon May 19, 2008 1:16 am

It's cheap, it shows a lack of creativity, it would be impossible in universe and they're ugly.

Duskofdead · Post by **Duskofdead** » Mon May 19, 2008 2:49 am

Tsukiyumi wrote:Yeah, I don't really care for them. I think I may have spotted one in a DS9 episode I was watching on Youtube the other day. Where did these things show up, exactly?

Majority of the kitbashes were either partial ships only in the Wolf 359 graveyard, or seen docked or in the direct vicinity of DS9 in quick "back from the commercial" vista scenes.

I think that if we "didn't know any better" (i.e. we couldn't tell a Miranda from an Akira) like most viewers, which is probably what the special effects decisions counted on, we wouldn't think they were so bad. I think a lot of it is "knowing better" and knowing how "wrong" disproportionately sized pieces of starships we already know look on a bash ship.

Post by **Teaos** » Mon May 19, 2008 2:57 am

Did anyone here notice right away they were a kitbash or only after someone pointed it out?

Duskofdead · Post by **Duskofdead** » Mon May 19, 2008 2:59 am

I noticed a couple right off but like in the Wolf 359 scene, I never would have guessed what -any- of those starships were. They just looked like small incomplete bits of debris to me. How people "figured out" or drew up sketches of what the "complete" kitbash would have looked like whole is beyond me, because all we see is some wreckage.

Post by **Mikey** » Mon May 19, 2008 3:02 am

The one that I noticed right away was what DITL calls the Yeager-class. Any other ones didn't strike me until after a bit of study.

Post by **Teaos** » Mon May 19, 2008 3:02 am

Zooming in as backstage information probably.

Blackstar the Chakat · Mon May 19, 2008 2:30 pm

KuvahMagh wrote:
Really, the concept is just awful. I'd rather see a squadron of Sabres or another Nebula class than some crap model they tossed in to add variety, or whatever. What's the OOU reason behind them? Any thoughts or information on that?
Totally agree with you. I'm not sure what brought them into being. My best guess is Berman and Braga getting high on model glue while trying to build a model of Voyager and thinking it would be uber cool to strap random pieces onto it...

I think some of them may have been experimental concept models for Voyager. That would explain why so many of these ships with Intrepid-class saucer sections. They probably had these concept models laying around and decided it would be fun to squeeze them into the show.

Post by **Teaos** » Mon May 19, 2008 2:33 pm

But wouldnt they have needed to have the full Intrepid model to make these kitbashes? Thus making it impossible for them to be made as a possible Voyager?

Blackstar the Chakat · Mon May 19, 2008 2:37 pm

Well, I think they had the saucer section pinned down, and were trying to do something 'different' with the engineering section and the nacelles. I'll see if I can't find some of the proto-Voyager pics I've saved over the years.

Blackstar the Chakat · Mon May 19, 2008 2:44 pm

Okay, I may have been wrong. I thought this pic looked like one of the kitbashes, but after looking it over again I realize I may have been wrong. Although...it would have made more sense then the real kitbashes:

Post by **Teaos** » Mon May 19, 2008 2:48 pm

I just thought the scale issue ruled out the proto Voyager idea although it would make sense. I just cant see them slapping together bits of ships to make a ship thats going to star for 7 seasons.

Blackstar the Chakat · Mon May 19, 2008 2:51 pm

Teaos wrote:I just thought the scale issue ruled out the proto Voyager idea although it would make sense. I just cant see them slapping together bits of ships to make a ship thats going to star for 7 seasons.

I thought they were early models to give a general idea. Like rapid prototyping. Although it was a long time since I looked at an article about the proto-Voyager designs so I'm thinking I may have been wrong.